An electrodeless lamp is a gas discharge lamp that includes a sealed transparent bulb filled with an ionized gas (e.g., a plasma) that may be excited by an electric or magnetic field. Unlike a typical gas discharge lamp in which current is passed between internal electrodes at opposite ends of a bulb, the electric or magnetic field that is used to excite the gas within the bulb of an electrodeless lamp is provided from a source outside the interior of the bulb.
The wavelength of the light emitted by an electrodeless bulb depends on the composition of the gas. In some applications, electrodeless lamps are used to generate ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and in other applications, electrodeless lamps are used to generate light within the visible spectrum.
Electrodeless lamps are well suited for certain applications. However, conventional electrodeless lamp systems tend to have poor system efficiency.